Powder inhaler



MY i5 3952 G. v. TAPLAN ETAL M2M POWDER INHLER Filed June 5. 1947 IN1/EN G50/Q65 V. X21/DL A TORNEY Patented July 15, 1952 UNITED STATES PATENT oFFIcEs.

POWDER INHALER George V. Taplin and Frederick A. Bryan, Brighton, N. Y.

Application June 3, 1947, Serial No. 752,030

6 Claims. (Cl. 128-206) The present invention relates to apparatus for administering therapeutic agents by inhalation. In a more specific aspect this invention relates to inhalers of the type disclosed in our pending application Serial No. 733,280, filed March 8, 1947. now Patent No. 2,533,065.

In our application Serial No. 733,280 we have disclosed a Vmethod of administering therapeutic agents in which the agent is prepared in dry, micro-pulverized form and inhaled. Two different forms o f apparatus for administering the therapeutic agent are described, one, an ,insufflator adapted to be used repeatedly, and the other, a disposable inhaler whichY isY adapted to administer a single dose of the therapeutic agent and is intended to be used only once and then thrown away.

` One object of the present invention is to provide an improved` piece of apparatus for administering therapeutic agents in the dry, pulverized state.

'AA further object of the invention is to provide a piece of apparatus for the purpose described which is semi-disposable, and which comprises an inhaler that is adapted to be used repeatedly-with disposable capsules, each containing a single, measured dosage of the drug which is to be administered.

Another object of Ythe invention is to provide a disposable capsule or container for use with an inhaler of the character described which will hold a single dose of the powdered medicine and will keep that dose dry indefinitely until used.

Still another object of the invention is to provide an inhaler of the character described which will b'e extremely low in cost; in fact, which can be made so cheaply that it'can bethrown away after a patient has completed a1v series of treatments for a specific ailment. f

' A still further object of the invention is to provide an inhaler which does not require coordination of the patient in order to use it.

" Other objects of the invention will be apparent hereinafter from the specication and from the recital of the appended claims.

In the drawings: I

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of an inhaler made according to a preferred embodiment of this invention;

Fig. 2 is a bottom plan view of the inhaler on a considerably enlarged scale;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view, showing the inhaler ready for use and having a part of the capsule ,or container for the therapeutic agent secured thereto, the section through the inhaler being taken on the line 3-3 -of Fig-2;

Fig. 4 is a section on the line 4-4 of Fig. 5`showing a capsule or container made accordingto the present invention; and Fig. 5 is a side elevation of this capsule or con tainer.

'I'he claims of our pending application Serial No. 733,280 referred to above are confined to therapeutic agents and to a process foradministering such agents by inhalation.` In the present application we are claiming apparatus for administering such therapeutic agents by inhalation.

The apparatus of the present invention voomprises an inhaler and capsules or disposable con'- tainers for holding the drug which is to be administered. 'Ihe capsule is adapted to contain a measured dosage of the drug'. When the drug is to be administered, the capsule is opened'and the part of it, which holds the therapeutic agent, is pushed over one end of the inhaler. Then the patient breathes through the other end of the in'- haler, drawing the powdered drug up through the inhaler into his nose or mouth. d

Referring now to the drawings by numerals -of reference, I0 denotes an inhaler made according to this invention. Itis an elongated body preferably made of a plastic material, such as poly styrene. It has a base portion II whose lower face is a flat, generally plane surface I2; and it is formed with a shoulder or ange I 3 a short distance above the base and with an ogival shaped nose portion I4 at its opposite end. A hole I5 extends axially through the inhaler. Other holes IB are formed through the inhaler from the outside of the upper face I1 of the shoulder I3 to the bottom I2 of the base II. These holes are equispaced around the axis of the inhaler, and are preferably inclined in two directionsf'to the axis of the inhaler, namely sidewise and lengthwise They are oblique or skew to the axis of the in' haler and they converge toward the bottom face I2 of the inhaler.

The Y micro-pulverized therapeutic agent D, which is to be used in the inhaler, is adapted to be sold in capsules. A preferred type capsule` is shown in Figs. 4 and 5. It comprises a bottom part 20 and a top or cover part 2|. The bottom part 20 is preferably made with a tab 22 which can be grasped in the fingers While pulling the two parts apart to open the capsule. The cover is preferably made, as shown, to narrow toward its mouth,'so that it may resiliently engage the bot-J tom part 20 and seal the drug in the capsule. Either part 20 or 2l of the capsule may be made of a size to fit over the base portion II of the inhaler to hold the drug while it is being inhaled by the patient through the inhaler. In the embodiment shown, the top portion 2I' is designed for this purpose. Therefore, the capsule is inverted just before use so that the therapeutic agent D in it will run out of the bottom of the capsule into the top thereof. Then the two parts of the capsule are pulled apart by holding part 2| in the fingers of one hand and drawing part 20 out of it by pulling on tab 22 with the fingers of the other hand. Then part 2 I with the dry, micropulverized drug therein is shoved over the base I I of the inhaler to secure it to the inhaler. The base II is preferably tapered inwardly from shoulder made sufciently resilient to hold tightly around x base portion I I when it is in position. v

In use, the patient places the end'l'd ofthe inhaler into one of the nostrils or into the'inouthand breathes in. Air is thus drawn in through the holesIS into-the powder container or capsuie/'part 2 I. The-skewarrangementof the ducts I8 creates a turbulence in thepowder D in the container 2I, and the Apowder suspended in air is drawn up through the duct I5 into the nostril or mouth.

The parts 20 and- ZI of the capsule are preferably made of -a cellulose type. plastic such as cellulose acetate or butyrate Vwhich is .notonly resilient but non-hygroscopic. This latter is an important feature of the invention. Ordinarily. medicinal -capsules .are made of gelatin. When agelatin Acapsule is 4used to hold -a powdered drug Vsuch as -is intended to beemployed in the inhaler of the V.present invention, it .has been found that the gelatin gives up its water content which may beras high as eleven to fifteen percent. This makes the drug moist, and the particles stick together, causing the drug vto Vbe inhaled Ain lumps Ior gobs instead of -in -the micro-pulverized particulate form desired, and rtending. to clog the inhaler duct I5. Furthermore, when a gelatin capsule has rlost its moisture content, it shrinks in size, gets brittle, easily breaks ofi" and loses its resilience. It is no longer suitable for use for storing drugs such asare intended to be used in inhalers Vmade according to this invention. v

The use of non-hygroscopic Acapsules is. thereforel an important achievement of this invention. Plastic capsules can be molded to have rounded edges as indicated ysit-2li and 25. Thus the sharp edges of the ordinary gelatin 4capsule can be avoided. There is no danger of these edges breaking and vdropping into -the powdered drug, Where it maybe drawninto duct I5 with the powder, clogging the duct. This has happened with gelatin capsules. When the capsules are made of a proper plastic orvof glass, however, the pulverized drug will be preserved dry until ready for use. Thus assurance is had that the inhaler will work freely and easily, and that the eiilciency of our novel method of administration Voftherapeutic agents in the dry, powdered state by inhalation may be achieved.

The inhaler AIl) itself can be made very cheaply. `It is so cheap that like the capsule it 'can be thrown a-Way when it has served its purpose. Ordinarily, though, a patient will keep and use the inhaler until he has completed his course of treatments for the speclc ailment for which he is undergoing treatment. Thus, he may `use one inhaler fora course of treatment during which he Amay ruse a dozen or more capsules, each containing `a -single dose of the drug to be administered.

v he or she does not have to time his or her breathnection with a particular embodiment thereof, it

will be understood that it is capable of various further modifications, and that this `application is intended to cover any variations, uses or adapttations of the invention 4fol1owingin general. the principles of the invention and including such departures from the present disclosure as come within known or customary practice inthe art to which the invention pertains and as may be applied to the essential features hereinbefore set forth and as fall within the scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims'.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim is:

1. Apparatus for administration ofa therapeutic vagent .inthe dry, powdered state,com prising an elongated inhaler having Vone end shaped to be inserted into a nostril, and having an air duct extending centrally therethrough from said nostril end to the `other end* thereof. said inhaler having a flange or shoulder vformed externally thereon adjacent said latter end, .and a plurality of air ducts disposed circularly about said central duct and extending from the outside of the shoulder to said otherendof the inhaler, said last-named ducts converging toward one another at the latter end of the inhaler and being also oblique tothe centralr duct. A

2. Apparatus for administration of a therapeutic agent in rthe dry, powdered state, comprising in combination, an lelongated inhaler having one end thereof shaped to enter anostrii, and a disposable cup-shaped container adapted to hold a measured dose of the agent, said inhaler having a shoulder formed externally thereon adjacent its latter-named end and having a duct extending centrally therethrough from one end thereof to the other and a plurality vofducts arranged circularly about said central duct and extending from the outside of the shoulder to the latter-named end of thexinhaler, said last-named ducts converging toward thelatter-namedend of the inhaler and extending obiiquely of the central duct, and said container being made of a resilient material and being adapted to 'fit over the latter-named end -of the inhaler and abut against the shoulder thereof.

3. Apparatus for administrationl of a therapeutic agent in dry, powdered form by' inhalation comprising in combination, an inhaler body member having a central air passage extending through it from top to bottom vand open at both ends and having a shoulder formed externally thereon adjacent its bottom end, said body member being provided with aplurality of air passages, which are vdisposed about said `central passage and which .are open'fat yboth ends,

said last-named air passages extending from the top of said shoulder to the bottom of the body member, and a hollow container for the agent removably secured to the body member at the bottom thereof tosurround the bottom open ends of all the air passages whereby all said air passages communicate with the interior of the container.

4. Apparatus for administration of a therapeutic agent in dry, powdered form by inhalation comprising in combination, an inhaler body member having a central air passage extending through it from top to bottom and open at both ends, -and having a shoulder formed externally thereon adjacent its bottom end, said body member having a plurality of air passages disposed about said central air passage and open at both ends and extending from the top of the shoulder to the bottom of the body member, said last-named air passages converging toward the central air passage from top to bottom, and a hollow container for the agent removably secured to the body member at the bottom thereof to abut against the bottom 'of said shoulder and to surround the bottom open ends of all the air passages of the body member whereby all said air passages communicate with the interior of the container.

5. Apparatus for administration of a therapeutic agent in a dry, powdered form by inhalation comprising in combination, an inhaler body member having a central air passage extending through it from top to bottom and open at both ends and having a shoulder'formed externally thereon adjacent its bottom end, said body member having a plurality of air passages disposed about said central passage and open at both ends and extending from the top of the shoulder to the bottom of the body member, said last-named air passages being disposed in skew arrangement to the central air passage but converging toward the central passage from top to bottomI and a hollow container for the agent removably secured to the body member at the bottom thereof to abut against the bottom of said shoulder and to surround the bottom open ends of all the air passages of the body member whereby all said air passages communicate withv ing an elongated body member having a central outlet air passage extending throughit which is open at both ends, said body member having its upper end shaped to be inserted in a human respiratory opening and having an external shoulder formed thereon adjacent its lower end, said body member being'provided with a plurality of air inlet passages which are open at both ends and which are straight and which extend from the top of said shoulder to the lower face of said body member, and a hollow cup-like container for the agent, said container having its bottom end closed and its upper end open and being removably secured to the body member at the lower end thereof in abutment against the lower face of said shoulder, to surround both the lower end of said central outlet air passage and the lower ends of said plurality of air inlet passages whereby all said passages communicate with the interior of said container, said outlet and inlet air passages terminating at their lower ends in substantially the same plane.

GEORGE V. TAPLIN. FREDERICK A. BRYAN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Y Date 223,793 Yates Jan. V20, 1880 263,451 Adams Aug. 29, 1882 363,067 Heintzelman May 17, 1887 598,286 Curran Feb. 1, 1898 691,687 Wilson Jan. 2l, 1902 712,979 Taylor Nov. 14, 1902 y 723,070 Taylor Mar. 17, 1903 928,884 Randall July 20, 1909 2,024,249 Robinson Dec. 17, 1935 2,214,032 Stewart Sept. 10, 1940 2,290,348 Moule July 21, 1942 2,310,681 Derham Feb. 9, 1943 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 12,853 Great Britain of 1912 325,417 Germany Sept. 14, 1920 358,439 Germany Sept. 9, 1924 429,930 Germany June 10, 1926 

